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Americans will soon have to get a special authorization to visit Europe

The ETIAS, or European Travel Information and Authorization System, will be required for travel to Europe starting 2021.
Credit: AP
In this May 9, 2017, file photo, U.S. passports lie on a table in Dallas. A grace period for U.S. states to make their driver’s licenses compliant with new REAL ID standards for domestic flights is set to expire Jan. 22, 2018, but 23 states have been granted extensions and the other 27 states plus Washington D.C. are already compliant with the new rules. Passports of course remain acceptable ID for domestic and international air travel. (AP Photo/Benny Snyder, File)

U.S. citizens will no longer be able to travel to Europe without getting special authorization starting in 2021. 

The European Union introduced the European Travel Information and Authorization System, or ETIAS, will be required for those who want to visit Europe. Currently, U.S. citizens are able to travel to Europe without a visa if they are staying less than 90 days.

The ETIAS is required for travelers to the European Schengen Area, which is a zone consisting of 26 countries and three micro-states. Countries often frequented by tourists such as France, Spain, Germany, Italy and Poland are included in the area. 

The ETIAS application is relatively straightforward. U.S. citizens need a valid passport, email and credit or debit card. Registration will be available online

The ETIAS is valid for three years, so Americans won't have to get a new ETIAS each time they travel to Europe within that three year period.

On their website, the EU said that they have implemented the new system in order to "improve their security level to avoid any further problems with illegal migration and terrorism".  

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